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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: land · lie · can · mark · cold · firm · face · sharp

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. firm — decided
  3. land — to come down
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. can — a tin
  6. cold — not warm
  7. sharp — clever
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — to recline
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. firm — a company
  13. can — a tin
  14. cold — an illness
  15. land — ground
  16. face — to confront
  17. can — to be able to
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. firm — steady
  20. mark — a grade
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. face — to point toward
  23. land — a country
  24. face — part of the head

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com